My Wage
I bargained with life for a penny,
and Life would pay no more,
however I begged at evening
when I counted my scanty store;

For Life is a just employer,
he gives you what you ask,
but once you have set the wages,
why, you must bear the task.

I worked for a menial's hire,
only to learn, dismayed,
that any wage I had asked of Life,
Life would have paid.

by Jessie B. Rittenhouse



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